Margin-led pricing
Menu pricing calculator
Find the net selling price required to cover variable costs, percentage fees, and a chosen contribution margin.
Your inputs
Editable user inputs. No values are submitted.
Live result
Target net price$8.06Covers the entered cost, percentage fee, and contribution target.
Formula
How the calculation works
Target price = fixed variable costs ÷ (1 − fee rate − target margin)With $5.40 fixed variable cost, 3% fees, and a 30% target margin, the target net price is $8.06.
Example only. It is not a benchmark or recommendation.Restaurant menu pricing
How to calculate a menu price from portion cost
- Cost the recipe using usable ingredient quantities, then divide by saleable portions.
- Add variable labor and packaging per portion to the cost input.
- Enter fees as a percentage of selling price and choose a contribution-margin target.
- Compare the resulting net price with your menu, customer demand and overhead needs.
Food cost percentage and margin answer different questions
A $3 ingredient cost at a 30% food-cost target implies a $10 price. But if labor and packaging add $2 and fees take 3%, the contribution at $10 is $4.70, or 47%. That contribution still has to cover fixed overhead and profit.
This calculator uses contribution margin, not a food-cost target. Do not enter 30% expecting ingredients alone to be 30% of the price. Use the food cost percentage calculator to check that separately.